purchased a nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6 if-ed vr from john 3:16 at sim lim square about a week ago but never had the time to test out its fullest capability until last weekend on sunday at the zoo. though the weather forecast predicted heavy rain with thunder, thankfully it didn't turn out exactly so, except for a little drizzle which was still eh-okay! compared a few models before actually having decided on the above lens, including tamron's range of zoom lens and the latest 70-300mm selling at an awesome $370 only which was super attractive! however its results weren't exactly to the liking after a number of test trying. shots taken beyond 200mm were really soft. not to mention it seriously needed some vibration reduction to go along with that amount of zoom. yeah, the nikkor 55-200mm was definitely a great buy. im way impressed with the quality of its captures considering with the tight budget of mine. in conclusion, its worth a recommendation to you out there as a 2nd zoom lens to own. :)